‘Pav’ a day: Dorofeyev nets OT winner for Knights after returning from injury

Hunched in pain and lying on the ice for several seconds, it looked like Pavel Dorofeyev’s night was over.

The puck came off the stick of defenseman Jackson LaCombe and hit Dorofeyev inside his right knee.

Dorofeyev eventually got up and skated to the back under his own power. He came back late in the second period.

“I just blocked a shot,” Dorofeyev said. “It’s kind of a (expletive) part of my job, but it hurts more when I miss.”

He didn’t miss on Tuesday. Dorofeyev is the reason why the Vegas Golden Knights are one win away from going back to the Western Conference Final.

Dorofeyev notched his second goal of the game at 4:10 of overtime, and the short-handed Knights secured a 3-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks in Game 5 of their second-round series at T-Mobile Arena.

The Knights lead the best-of-seven series 3-2 and will have a chance to close it out in Game 6 on Thursday at Honda Center in Anaheim, California.

After the biggest game of his life, the soft-spoken Dorofeyev was a man of few words.

“It was so good,” Dorofeyev said. “It’s awesome.”

The 25-year-old goal scorer gathered a puck that center Jack Eichel rang off the post and picked the far corner off the hop for the first playoff overtime winner of his career.

“The puck seems to follow him,” coach John Tortorella said. “He doesn’t say much. Just goes and plays.”

Dorofeyev added a power-play goal in the first period when he stripped Anaheim center Chris Kreider of the puck, walked in the slot and scored top shelf.

He has seven goals in the playoffs, tied for the league lead.

“Massive game for Pav,” defenseman Rasmus Andersson said. “I think everyone who watches our games knows that he’s an elite goal scorer. In playoffs, sometimes, you got to eat a shot or take a hit to make a play.

“It’s big plays in big moments.”

Tomas Hertl, who ended a two-plus-month goal-less drought at the end of Game 4 on Sunday, broke a 1-1 tie at 4:48 of the third for his first 5-on-5 goal since Feb. 1.

Goaltender Carter Hart finished with 34 saves and improved to 6-0 in his postseason career in overtime.

But one he didn’t stop was Ducks defenseman Olen Zellweger’s wrist shot with 3:05 remaining that forced overtime.

The Knights were already going into Tuesday short-handed, playing without captain Mark Stone (lower body) for the second straight game and defenseman Jeremy Lauzon (upper body) for the fifth straight game.

It went from bad to worse nine minutes into the game when defenseman Brayden McNabb was given a major penalty and game misconduct for an interference penalty on Ducks center Ryan Poehling.

The hit was clean, but McNabb skated into his check late. Poehling’s head hit the glass and he needed assistance off the ice.

Ducks coach Joel Quenneville did not have an update on Poehling.

On top of Dorofeyev missing nearly 10 minutes in the second, the Knights were down to 16 skaters for most of a second period where they were outshot 16-7.

At 6:05 p.m., as fans were filing in, the loudspeakers played “Don’t Stop Believin’” by Journey, the typical song one plays before a game of much importance.

The Knights will fly to Anaheim one win away from heading to the NHL’s final four.

“We’re an experienced team. We’re a veteran team,” Tortorella said. “Our guys rely on that.”